{"id":230381,"date":"2026-06-10T17:44:26","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T17:44:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/martin-sander-head-of-sales-at-volkswagen-do-you-see-horses-today-remove-all-barriers-and-over-time-people-will-be-convinced\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T17:44:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T17:44:28","slug":"martin-sander-head-of-sales-at-volkswagen-do-you-see-horses-today-remove-all-barriers-and-over-time-people-will-be-convinced","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/martin-sander-head-of-sales-at-volkswagen-do-you-see-horses-today-remove-all-barriers-and-over-time-people-will-be-convinced\/","title":{"rendered":"Martin Sander, Head of Sales at Volkswagen: “Do You See Horses Today? Remove All Barriers and Over Time People Will Be Convinced”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The Shift to Electric: Volkswagen’s Urgent Need<\/h2>\n

Volkswagen is in a critical position where it needs to sell electric cars\u2014many of them. The looming European Union emissions regulations threaten hefty fines if the company doesn’t reduce its CO2 emissions. This pressure is pushing Volkswagen to drive customer adoption of electric vehicle (EV) technology aggressively.<\/p>\n

Comparing Combustion Cars to Horses<\/h2>\n

In this context, Martin Sander, the Head of Sales, Marketing, and Aftersales at Volkswagen<\/strong> from 2024, provided an intriguing analogy. During an interview with Auto Express<\/em>, he likened combustion cars to horses, illustrating the gradual societal shift towards more efficient forms of transportation. He stated:<\/p>\n

“Do you know when horses were banned? Since when has it been banned to buy horses? You can buy a horse today. But over time, more and more people realized that a vehicle was much better to get from A to B than a horse.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This analogy emphasizes Sander’s belief that electric cars are superior to combustion ones. However, he argued that pressuring consumers into the transition might not yield the best outcomes.<\/p>\n

Removing Barriers to Adoption<\/h2>\n

Sander’s approach highlights the need for a strategic shift in how electric vehicles are marketed. He suggests:<\/p>\n

“How can you convince the customer of a new technology if you only talk about the date when it will no longer be allowed to use those vehicles? Remove all barriers. Let’s talk about what we need to convince customers: charging infrastructure, the advantages of electric cars, and the price of energy… over time, more and more customers will be convinced.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

His call to action stresses the importance of focusing on the benefits of electric vehicles rather than imposing arbitrary deadlines on traditional combustion engines.<\/p>\n

The Importance of Consumer Choice<\/h3>\n

According to Sander, it\u2019s crucial that the market dictates the pace of change rather than being swayed by political pressures. This underscores a long-held industry sentiment\u2014prohibiting existing technologies does not inherently create favorable views toward new alternatives. His sentiments echo previous comments from industry leaders who believed that mandated changes do not facilitate constructive consumer relationships.<\/p>\n

Industry Dynamics and Political Influences<\/h2>\n

While Sander advocates for market-driven transitions, questions arise about the substantial investments Volkswagen is making in electrical platforms and technology. Would these investments have occurred without regulatory pressures prompting a shift away from combustion engines? Historically, significant technological advancements in the automotive field often stem from political advocacy rather than mere consumer preference.<\/p>\n

The Financial Stakes<\/h2>\n

Volkswagen’s urgency is not just ideological; it’s financial. The European Union has altered its penalty framework for manufacturers exceeding the CO2 emissions threshold. Manufacturers, including Volkswagen, face fines that could tally around \u20ac1,500 million if targets are not met by 2027. This added pressure underlines the necessity for Volkswagen to expedite its electric vehicle sales strategy, particularly introducing models priced under \u20ac25,000.<\/p>\n

Conclusion: Navigating the Future<\/h3>\n

Ultimately, Sander’s horse analogy serves as more than just a metaphor; it reflects the pressing issue of evolving market dynamics in the automotive landscape. As Volkswagen navigates this transformative period, it must balance compliance with consumer education and engagement. Only time will tell how successful they will be in moving consumers towards electric vehicles without alienating those who still rely on traditional combustion cars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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General News – 2<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Shift to Electric: Volkswagen’s Urgent Need Volkswagen is in a critical position where it needs to sell electric cars\u2014many of them. The looming European Union emissions regulations threaten hefty fines if the company doesn’t reduce its CO2 emissions. This pressure is pushing Volkswagen to drive customer adoption of electric vehicle (EV) technology aggressively. Comparing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":230382,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36399],"tags":[8063,11860,10272,6727,438,1163,3709,14730,269,1652,23503],"class_list":["post-230381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology","tag-barriers","tag-convinced","tag-horses","tag-martin","tag-people","tag-remove","tag-sales","tag-sander","tag-time","tag-today","tag-volkswagen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230381"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230381\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":230383,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230381\/revisions\/230383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/230382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}